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Bifold doors hate me…and the feeling is mutual. They never glide nicely and they take up a lot of space when they’re open. I’ve also had my fair share of struggles getting them jammed and having to try to get them back on their rails.

I lived without my closet doors on for nearly a year, but the task of putting them on was something that I knew was going to test my patience. I had to take them off when I replaced my flooring. The hardware that holds the bottom of the bifold door on had to be removed for me to lay the wood planks.

It took me several weekends to get the doors rehung. I had to keep walking away because my patience was exhausted. Just when I’d think that they were hung correctly, I would hop down off of the chair, test the opening and closing of the door and it would pop back off. So many f-words.

Finally, the shitty, hollow core bifold doors were hung – and secure. They added absolutely nothing good to the room other than the fact that there were doors on my closet.

I headed to Pinterest for ideas of what to do. I bought inexpensive full length mirrors, screwed them to the doors and painted it all white.

The doors took layer after layer after layer of paint, I had to come back to it at least 4 different times. When it was done, the white and the mirrors really made the room feel bigger.

I was standing back looking at it and started thinking about dressing rooms in stores. They always have hooks that you can hang clothes on outside of the doors. I went to Hobby Lobby to look at hardware and found some hooks that I added to the space above the mirrors.

This project was really not a big deal as far as DIY goes and cost less than $50. Anybody can do it!

The best thing is that I hate my bifold doors a lot less now and like that when the doors are opened, I’m able to see the back of myself – like when you’re in a dressing room.

We had our final walk-through of the home yesterday afternoon. This was the first time that the boys had been to the house. They’d seen pictures online, but were excited to get an idea of what their “bro cave” was all about. We timed the drive, wondering just how far we are going to be from their dad’s house. Driveway-to-driveway it was six minutes. We sat in the driveway for a bit while we waited for the realtor to arrive. Jeratt mentioned that he likes the window in the front door. Emmit and I discussed how to best go about getting rid of the weird trees that cover the front of the house. They wondered how you could cut a tree down like that and know which way it was going to fall. I explained that you cut the notch a specific wedge-like way and tie a rope to it. Of course, Emmit thinks that it would be much more fun to just cut it and see what happens.

Our realtor showed up a few minutes later and as we stood in the landing, I asked if the boys would like to go upstairs or downstairs first. We went up. They didn’t have a lot to say while we were up there, until Emmit found the shower. He thinks it’s awesome that the shower has 12 heads and listed which body part each shower head would be for. Next, we went downstairs and Jeratt found the built-in mini-fridge. I don’t think it works, but I still can’t figure that out for certain. Next, they found their rooms. Emmit’s room is SO small and I thought for sure he wouldn’t like it; I was right. Not only does he not like the size of his room, he thinks the closet is scary. That is not good, especially with him. I’m not sure what I’m going to do about that, but I’m guessing that having him look at Pinterest boards with me will help us find something that will help us find a solution for him liking his room.

The absolute best part of the walk-through was the backyard. Actually, the backyard is what sold me on the house. There weren’t any homes that were comparable in the area, trust me, I looked for six months. As it turns out, there were a few items that I’d never noticed before. Jeratt pointed out a gas fireplace that I had assumed was something the previous owners would take with them. After further inspection, we found out that it is built-in and hooked up to the home’s gas line. I have no idea how to use it, but I’m excited to learn! We took a peek in the shed and found a lawn mower and a full cabinet area with a countertop. The shed had been too full for me to see that area before. I’m so excited to have that space for pool cleaners, toys and gardening supplies. The boys were running around pointing everything out as I was trying to wrap my head around how to work the gas fireplace and wondering if the lawn mower actually works. They were excited to also find a “real” fire pit back by the retaining wall, interesting lights that look like UFO’s on sticks and the upside-down 5 gallon bucket that is placed over a big post that the diving boards attaches to. We later found the diving board in the garage, stored away for winter.

There was one thing that I found while we were standing outside of the shed. It’s just a silly little thing, but it made my heart leap a little bit. I grew up seeing these owls in my dad’s pull barn and hanging from the canopy on his pontoon. The purpose is that they scare other birds and geese away. For me, it’s a little symbol of home, and that’s a nice thing to have and a nice thing to feel right now.

On our drive home (which will be referred to as Jason’s house in a few days), I asked they boys if they like the house. They both answered enthusiastically and listed a few of the things that they liked best. Jeratt likes the fire pit best. Emmit likes the diving board and the crazy shower. We weaved through the neighborhood looking at Christmas lights. They boys pointing out where some of their friends live and how close they are to so-and-so. Their feelings could have gone in many directions and I had no idea what they would think or how they would feel. I’m so thankful that they found things that they like and that they now have a better understanding of how far we’ll be from Jason and what their rooms are like. I knew that I could make this house into something that they feel safe and comfortable in, but I am grateful that they’re already feeling as if it is their space.